>> linda lighthowser. >> hello commissioners. i also want to thanks for this round of community opportunities fund grants. i work very hard with the prague street neighbors to get signatures for this project and i want you to know these were not people involved. i thought it was important that you know that. they live adjacent to crocker amazon park and wanted to use the steps that are in total decay. they volunteered to do maintenance once the project is completed and to watch over it and supervise it. they went to their churches and school groups to gather the signatures and these people are so grateful how government works. thank you. >> thank you. any others to speak on the

consent calendar? being none, this item is closed. commissioners we would need a motion to approve the consent calendar without 5e. >> item e will be taken off? >> yes. >> and then provided separately after this vote. is there a motion? >> commissioner harrison? >> i apologize. >> before we vote on, this and i'm sure it will be unanimous, i just wanted to compliment the people. i have been blessed and lucky enough and honored to be on that committee with these folks jake and jenny and the staff put together a great committee. there it's unbelievable that the work and the interest these people take in making sure these important projects get money to get done. it's just as some of our folks have mentioned it's just a great program. it's something that should have been done a long time ago and

i'm hoping that other bond measures, the and the next one is coming along and i hope to continue with this great group of people. they know their parks out there very well and they all bring something to this committee and it's an honor to be serving with them. if you would be patient with me i will read their names. bill wheel, he is very knowledgeable about things. cara rupert, a landscape architect, very good. terrance yang, linda da viro, you can see the interest this lady takes and she is now the president of prosac and jonathan silverman and i would like to give them a big thank you. [ applause ]

>> moved and seconded. all those in favor? >> aye. >> so moved >> now we are on item 5e, the department of emergency management back lot security project. >> good morning commissioner holly pearson from the capital and planning commission. this item was referred to the consent calendar earlier this month, but however due to requests by the city attorney's office we have made some minor non-substantive changes to the text of the actually encroachment permit, exhibit c. we would just like to briefly explain it's minor clarifications to language, addition adding and emphasizing that the property will be renovated through the 2012 parks bond and therefore, the installation of the security fencing is considered temporary. and adding to the recitals, date of approval by the commission. and that is pretty much it. that is what the changes are.

>> thank you. >> is there any public comment on this item? being none, public comment is closed. commissioners? >> is there a motion? >> so moved. >> seconded. >> all those in favor? >> a. >> so moved. thank you. >> thank you. item 6, the san francisco zoo. >> good morning commissioner i'm wayne redding the cfo of the san francisco zoo. in the absence of tanya peterson our director i will present the zoo's update today. >> thank you. >> beginning with the financial update,

>> are you doing a powerpoint? >> yes. >> okay. >> beginning with the financial update i'm very happy to report and certainly as the cfo to report that our actually year-to-date attendance through january 319 is 449,869 visitors. it's overbudge by 8.2% or 34,069 visitors. we just had a very, very good first-half of the year and to add to that, we have had a spectacular and record-setting presidents' holiday weekend, including lunar new year on sunday and the opening of a temporary dinosaur maze exhibit on friday. you can visit the dinosaur maze expect in our exhibit.

zoo camps are held in march, april, june, july and august. please check our website, our call the education determine for more information. please sign up early as the classes fill very quickly. it's fun and educational time for the young folks that come to the zoo. another positive note we're honored and delighted to have san francisco giant's pitcher sergio romar visit the zoo to meet his namesake baby francois langar monkey. [ laughter ] >> baby has a bright orange head and created the buzz with the fans, animal-lovers and the media and named romo.

staff just loved spending a few hours with him. he toured the gorilla and primate discovery center and enjoyed some behind the scenes activities and certainly as staff, visitors and the media all enjoys him being out for the day. and on the best note for the institution, and sometime in my opinion that we're extremely proud to announcement birth of a sumatran tiger cub. there is a picture of him. the cub was born february 10th. he is bonding extremely well with the mother leighan in the house which is currently closed to the public. it will remain closed until such time as staff feel comfortable he can go in the

exhibit. mother leighan was donated to the san francisco zoo by the texas zoo. in 2008 she had three cubs the father larry is a 6-year-old and on loan from the audubonzoo in new orleans. sumatran tigers are the small st species of tigers. there are 400 remaining in the wild. so we're extremely happy to have the baby with us and look forward to him being on exhibit at some time later. public viewing is unknown at this time, but we'll annouce it on the website. that concludes my report. >> thank you very much. >> is there any public comment on this item.

being none, public comment is closed. thank you we are on item 7 the open space contingency reserve funds 2012 bond project preparation services. >> thank you margaret. >> you are welcome. >> good morning commissioners, general manager, dan mauer with the capital division. the item before you today here is for your approval to appropriate and extend funs in amount of $670,000 from the open space contingency reserve funds. as presented at the capital committee, these funds are intended to help jump-start the 2012 bond program by doing some investigation work and some other upfront studies for seven of our capital projects that are on the front-end of our schedule. in your packages you will see those facilities listed. i won't read through them here, but essentially the funds will be used for topographic

surveys, geotechnical surveys, soil studies, hazardous materials testing the all the facilities including destructive testing to open some walls and look inside and see what we find in there. tree surveys for the facilities at the appropriate locations. and so the goal here is to jump-start this process, have that information conducted and inhan by the first bond series. when we do receive the first bond sale which is anticipated this summer the open space funds will be paid back. soially this is borrowing open space funds and we'll reimburse the account after the first sale is executed. that process of reimbursement has been approved by the city attorney and also the office of the public finance. with that, look forward to your approval. >> thank you. >> is there any public comment on this item? kathy. >> good morning commissioners. katherine howard, sfocean

edge.org. the bond funding includes funding for the west sunset playground renovation and we would like to point out that west sunset figures in alternatives involved in two legal actions going on, regarding the soccer field. for those people who are not aware, the beach chalet soccer fields are a proposal to take over seven acres at the western end of golden gate park to remove the grass and install turf. our organization has been working to try to provide alternatives to this project. meanwhile we are involved in an appeal to the california coastal commission for the local coastal zone and there is another group that filed a ceqa lawsuit in superior court. there is a simple solution to

providing more hours of play for children and preserving the beauty and habitat of golden gate park and ocean beach for all san franciscans. and i put a picture here. that is our alternative, which is a simple swap in material where's you renovate fields with artificial turf. however, with a safe material, not with the sbr rubber infill and also with appropriate lighting and renovated beach chalet fields with real grass and no sports lights. there is no doubt that the beach chalet fields are in need of repair. we completely support this with subsurface drainage and improved soil structure, state-of-the-art irrigation, gopher controls and new sod. this will protect the parkland for everyone. as well as preserving the evening skies at ocean beach for star gazing, strolling at sunset and enjoying the fire rings.

at the same time the city could restore west sunset flay ground, only eight blocks to the south with artificial turf made of a safe material and with neighborhood-appropriate lighting this. is an ideal location, like golden gate park it's in the western part of san francisco. one of the project requirements, it already has these facilities. we just hope as the department starts these technical reports that you understand that we're hoping as always to come up with a compromise, and to have this alternative installed and please request the information, the technical reports, that is paid for by the bond to be included. thank you. >> thank you. >> is there anyone else who would like to make public comment on this item? being none, public comment is closed. >> commissioner low? >> yes, this came before the capital committee and one of the goals that we are striving

to do, with the 2012 bond is to be smarter and to try to minimize the change orders and the unknown site conditions. i think this goes a long way to learning what is out at the site to try to minimize not completely eliminate change orders, but to minimize and get a better cost control. so i would like to move this item for approval. >> second. >> it's been moved and seconded, all of those in favor? >> aye. >> so move >> ed we're now on itemle, palace of fine arts building exploratorium short-term lease with town school. >> good morning commissioners, president buell, general manager ginsburg, cassandra castillo with the department and i'm proud to be before you

to present a short-term lease agreement with town stool for the palace of fine arts. as you know the exploratorium, which has been a long-term 40-year tenant of the palace of fine arts is scheduled to vacate the premises at the end of this month pursuant to their lease agreement. the department has been working with the palace of fine arts advisory committee, which has been a talented and professional group of individuals and organizations and the public to solicit input on best and potential uses for long-term tenancy at the palace. whoa the department intends to commence a competitive bid process, activating the soon to be vacant site with interim tenants:department has been in

conversations with those interested in the space from march through august of this year and those range from international arts exhibition, corporate events or events related to america's cup. beginning in august of this year, through july of 2014, the department is proposing to use the space vacated by the exploratorium for the temporary occupancy of town school. town school is located on jackson street. jackson street location will be undergoing renovations this school year. and they need to temporary relocate their facility and they approached the department earlier last year, pardon me, to operate their school just for this school year at the palace of fine arts. i wanted to give you a little bit of information about town school and their mission statement. diversity, inclus and equity are essential core values at

town school. town believes that the best education for their student requires a diverse experience, and that a broad spectrum of ideas is essential for understanding different perspectives, challenging assumptions and inspiring curiosity to support critical and complex thinking. town believes that a diverse and vibrant community is essential to build and sustain such a community. town schools strives to enroll students and familis from a broad range of socioeconomic backgrounds, cultures, races, religions and sexual orientations and additional, recruits and maintains faculty and staff from the same broad range of backgrounds. to achieve these goals town provides scholarships to approximately 20% of the students and act i don't havely solicits a diverse student body. so here is a little bit about the short-term lease terms. we're looking as a mentioned

before a term of july through -- pardon me august of this year through july of 2013. they do have the option to extend through september of 2014, with the department consent. and to show you how serious we are that this is a short-term lease the department and town have agreed to a $10,000 per day penalty for any day they would be in the space beyond their lease expiration date. and again, they are permitted to use the space for the operation of their k-8 school and they will also be maintaining and keeping open to the public the bathrooms in the lobby area that have been open to the public through the use of the exploratorium. we have negotiated a monthly rent of $42,000 a month, which is comparable to what we were receiving with the exploratorium. and we are proposing to provide town school with one month of a rent credit to partially

compensate for their architecture, engineering and mechanical and plumbing costs and building permits and related fees and we have a $42,000 security deposit as part of this lease agreement. during the initial term of their tenancy, the department is looking at a revenue here of $420,000. and again, this interim use is very important as it provides a source of ongoing maintenance for the site, so it doesn't fall into disrepair or become subject to vandalism and offers positive activation of the site while remaining full use of the surrounding park. so as part of this lease agreement, town school will dedicate a portion of the space for public exhibition to showcase information about the ppie, as well as bernad may beck and they will also be offering public recreation activities ranging from summer camp and evening children

activitis or yoga classes and arts and crafts workshops. they are required to submit a plan for such activities to the department by october of this year. and they are also required to make the space available for purposes for special events such as for america's cup. again, town school's proposed occupancy will not interfere with the public's use of the building or grounds our the operation of palace of fine arts theater. the department has given outreach to many community organizations, merchant organizations, donors of the 2010 palace restoration project, the cedar, the district supervisor, palace of fine arts advisory committee and many of the neighboring institutions and landowners in the area. should the commission today approve this lease agreement with town school, the department will work to execute

said agreement with ton school and commence their short-term lease agreement beginning this august. we do recommend that the commission approve this resolution. approving the short-term lease agreement if with town school to occupy a portion of the palace fine arts building and make it consistent with charter section 4.1 13. with that commissioners, that completes my presentation and happy to answer any questions that you may have. thank you. >> thank you. >> do we have any public comment on this item? so we'll ask to you line up against this wall, but we do need to ask you to not block the doors. so come on up. >> hi. my name is gina edwards and apologize for my voice have i alittle bit of a cold and i wanted to speak on town school. when we first learned of the need for the school to relocate

for a year, we were all very worried. it seems that such a move would be sisruptive and stressful, but the head master of the school -- i'm gina edwards and i'm the morning of two boys at school. so i speak on believe of the parent community. when brewster talked to us about the move, he said don't worry we'll treat this as an adventure and not a painful necessity. i do feel that possibly going to the exploratorium would completely deliver on that promise. it's an inspired choice and the kids, the parents and teachers are all very excited about being there. we all have really fond memories of the exploratorium as visitors and i think being there for the kids will not only ensure minimal disruption for their education, but also inject an extra sense of fun and creativity into their school year. town school has always embody the spirit of education and being in the deplore tourm

would be that, another way to teach in the a joyful manning. town school's approach to learning is consistent with the exploratorium's approach to learning and so town would be honoring the tradition and the spirit of the exploratorium. town has made a commitment to teaching it's boys on 21 century learning, which is to say self-directed learning by the boys, in collaboration with one another. it is hands-on learning and the exploratorium was founded based on the principles of hands-on learning through interactive exhibits. as a result, if town were to be in the space, that was formerly occupied by the exploratorium, it would be honoring the tradition of the exploratorium. thank you for your time and i hope you approve this lease. >> thank you. >> thank you or next speaker, please. >> hello. my name is gerard fortunato and

i'm a 5th grade humanities teacher at town school and i teach gina's kids. when i was approached to take the time to come here today i was very excited to come and speak on behalf of town school and its short-term lease at the exploratorium site. i think the main thing i want to communicate to is among the many values that we try to instill in the students that we teach is the idea of sustainability and stewardship and what a great way to instill that lesson in a building that we could maintain a stewardship of during our short-term occupation. i'm actually very nervous, thank you very much. and i hope and urge you to approve the lease. thanks. >> thank you. >> next speaker. >> good morning.

i am nancy dowdy with town schools for boy, director of finance and operations. it's an honor to be entrusted with the opportunity to care for the palace of fine arts building for the next school year and we take that trust seriously. i am responsible for the execution of the terms of this short-term lease. we have negotiated for the space and i want to personally assure you that should you approve your tenancy, town school will meet all of the commitments that we made in the lease agreement. as i have gone through the process of working through the issues of getting through this point today, the real benefits of this short-term public-private partnership has become evident. the city gets a tenant who can pay the rent and will be good stewards for this amazing space and has a schedule that allows the city to reclaim the space when needed. the school has the opportunity to recreate our mid-century campus into an appropriate educational space for the 21 century. on behalf of the entire town school community i want to thank you for that opportunity.

last i, i would be remiss if i didn't take the opportunity to repeat what i said to the committee earlier this month about how much i have appreciated the efforts of mr. kinsey and miss castillo to get to today's hearing. during the lease negotiating process they were truly focused on protecting the public's interest, but always listened to our needs to be able to operate a school in this building as well. when our needs conflicted we found a way to resolve it to mutual satisfaction. it was truly a pleasure working with such professionals. thank you for considering town school as a short-term tenant. thank you. >> thank you. next speaker >> hi. i'm a mother of two can is who go to town school. one is 7 and the other is 11. i am also a working mom, an entrepreneur and town board member. i can see some familiar faces.

so town school, i originally am from another country and decided to live in san francisco and have children choose town school for my boys for multiple reasons. when i looked at town, it was academically par none. the school's charter is actually learning is prized. and the love of school is essential and boyhood is celebrated. my kids both always want to go to school, except when they are sick and i remember as a young kid i used to look for ways to be sick not to go to school. so regardless of what they are learning, which we'll find out when they grow up, they love going to town school for reasons numerous. they a good peer group within town. the teachers actually try to

get them learn what is going on. it's a diverse environment. learning is actually stretched, science and math is taught in a very different manner, and the school is extremely diverse. my kids are of muslim heritage, so they are growing up with other kids from other color, race, /ethnicity and backgrounds. i have taken my kids to the exploratorium numerous times and i actually pushed science on them. i am teaching them how the universe is made and they hate those books , but it's a great place for them to go to school for a year and actually have more space than what they currently have at town. sote it gives them more freedom of moment and learning. so i would really appreciate and i hope you would give us this lease and we can have our kids explore the exploratorium for

one more year. thank you. >> thank you. >> next speaker, please. >> my name is laura mosson and i'm a town school parent. i am also a san franciscan since 1995 and my husband is that rare breed, a native. our two sworns born in san francisco and we cherish all of the city's resources, it's variety and its inclusiveness. we frequent the parks, playgrounds and the golden gate recreational area. both boys have spent many hour at exploratorium. we can hardly wait for the new space to open. i would like to express my family's excitement at the prospect of spending the 2013-2014 school year in the space formerly occupied about the exploratorium. i know town school for boys